Naruto: Konoha's First Jinchuriki
by justsomebodyyaknow
Summary: A world where Naruto's parents aren't anyone special. Uzumaki isn't some great ninja clan. Uchihas did not take over the plot. Sasuke wasn't turned into a co-protagonist. And Tailed Beasts were truly the strongest creatures in existence. [No bashing of anyone]
1. Chapter 1

Author's note:

Well, I ended up changing way little than expected. All I did was change a dialogue a little to avoid what seemed like a minor plot hole. More notes at the end of the chapter.

* * *

12 Years Ago

Minato Namikaze was afraid. Minato Namikaze, fourth Hokage, the most powerful Ninja of Konoha, who literally had a 'Flee on sight' order against him, was afraid.

He would've liked to think that he was only afraid for his village, his loved ones and friends. But that wouldn't be strictly true. Yes, he feared for his people, but he also feared for his own life. The simple and primal fear every living soul feels.

The source of this fear, of course was the Nine-Tails. A giant fox with nine tails. Which is like saying that the ocean is a big body of water. Accurate, but doesn't describe the true magnificence of it. Just like it couldn't really be described how terrifying the Nine-Tails was. It was said that even the other Tailed Beasts feared it.

So yes, Minato was afraid, and so was everyone else in the village. The Nine-Tails had decided to attack them. Half the village was already in tatters. Hard to believe that it was in perfect shape only few minutes ago. It had to be stopped, and Minato knew just how.

He looked at the destruction caused by the Fox from his window in the Hokage tower, an unreadable expression on his face. Just then, he vanished and teleported in front of a hospital. 'I hope God forgives me for what I'm about to do.' He thought, and then went in.

The hospital, like any other part of Konoha right now, was in complete disarray. People didn't know if I was safer to evacuate the building and go out in open or stay in and hope that the demon fox wouldn't target them.

"The Hokage is here! We're saved!" a running nurse shouted, seeing Minato in the hallway.

Minato shut his eyes hearing that, and sighed. 'It's for the greater good.' He told himself.

"Lord Hokage, you are here to save us all, right?" the nurse said with hope in her eyes. She had very short brown hair, her figure was a bit too thin, her eyes were big and she had a long face.

"Yes." Minato paused, a little uncertainty washed over him. But it was quickly gone just the way it came. "And you are going to help me." The nurse was surprised, but before she could say anything, Minato continued, "Now tell me, are there any newborn babies in the hospital right now? If so, can you please take me to them?"

The nurse was understandably confused, but did as was told and asked him to follow her. They went to the third floor where the maternity ward was.

"What is your name by the way?" Minato asked. Even in this situation, he couldn't help himself but start a mundane conversation.

"Huh? Oh. Suki. Suki Yaan." She answered as they reached the maternity ward and enter. It too, was in chaos. Women were crying, some clutching their babies and some covering their pregnant belly trying to protect their yet to born child. Seeing their Hokage entering the room, everyone's eyes went to Minato, but before anyone could say anything, Minato announced, "Do not worry. Nothing will happen to this village and its people as long as I'm here." More to assure himself than anyone else, then he told Suki in a much lower voice, "Take me to the youngest newborn here."

Suki still confused, nonetheless nodded and told Minato to follow her. They met up with one doctor, and after informing him about Minato's request, he led them to a bed three blocks ahead and pulled the curtains. There, stood a skinny and tall man with a too long blond hair. He was holding the hand of his presumable wife who was sitting up on the bed, holding their baby, whispering, "Everything will be alright. Everything will be alright." She was a little plump, and had short dark black hair. Her head was down, and her eyes were filled with tears, if the voice was any indication.

"These are the Uzumakis." The doctor announced. "Inko and Yagi. And their son… Uh…"

"Naruto." The tall and skinny man, now known to be named Yagi, answered the unasked question.

"Ah, yes. The delivery happened only two hours ago."

Minato cut straight to the chase, "I need your son to save the village." Well, that sounds really weird when you say it like that, thought Minato. And from the expression the Uzumakis gave him, they thought the same.

"Uh, I'm sorry. I don't think I heard you correctly. Did you just say that you need our son to save the village?" Yagi asked not believing his ears.

"Yes." Minato answers simply, and seriously.

For a few moments everyone just stared at Minato. Finally, Inko broke the silence, "Though I'm not quite sure how my son can help you in any way." She said with confusion and uncertainty, as she held her son Naruto towards the Hokage, "I trust you, Lord Hokage."

Minato was shocked to see this. What, WHAT, did he ever do have blind trust like this? Did he really deserve it?

"Inko! Are you mad? That is our son! How can you just give him up like that?!" Yagi said with a hint of anger and unbelievability.

"Do you trust me?" Inko asked simply.

"Of course. More than life itself."

"Then I'm telling you to trust our Hokage." And like that, the argument was over. Inko gave her son to Minato, who gently picked him up, a white cloth wrapped around him.

"Lord Hokage!" Yagi said a bit louder than he probably intended. Minato looked at him, he is trembling, his eyes almost on the verge of tears and the only thing holding them back is probably the need for him to be stronger for him family. "Don't- Don't let anything happen to him."

"I-" Minato started, but he suddenly he saw something in the window, something big and very very dangerous. Coming fast directly toward the hospital building. It was a Talied-Beast bomb. One of the smaller ones actually.

Minato reacted on instinct, and teleported away to the Hokage tower in the blink of an eye. There was no reason to go back. The whole hospital had just blown up. No survivors. Minato would've liked to mourn, but he did not have time. He had wasted too much to begin with.

He put the baby on the Hokage desk, carefully. He then faced to the large book shelf that was just right to the desk. It was ten feet tall and five feet wide. Minato bent down and tapped his finger seven times at different angles on the very bottom and left corner of the shelf. The sound of something turning and clicking was barely audible as a shallow drawer no more than five inch deep came forward. In there is a single sealing scroll. Minato takes it out and pushed the drawer back in. He went to Naruto and opened the scroll beside him. He saw that Naruto crying. 'Did he just started or was he crying from the start?' Minato couldn't remember. He shook his head as he opened the scroll. There were intricate sealing matrices and numerous strokes and marks in a pattern that somehow looked abstract and symmetrical at the same time. He picked up the scroll and turned it back placing it just a few inches directly above Naruto.

"Seal Transfer Jutsu!", He cries. A faint but visible white light seemed to come out from the seal and hit Naruto, whose body seemingly absorbed it all. After that, the whole sealing design from the scroll appeared on Naruto's body. It disappeared in a few seconds. Minato throws the seal away which was now completely blank.

Just then, the door behind him broke open, and an old man came barging in, showing strength and agility far beyond you would expect from someone his age.

"Minato! I was looking for you! I didn't think you would be here, but I came here anyway just to make sure. What are you still doing here? Everyone is-" He stopped as he saw a newborn baby in Minato's arm. Then he slowly asked, "What are you doing?"

Minato without looking back, replied, "What needs to be done" He turns his head just a little. "I'm sorry Sarutobi sensei, but I do not see any other way to stop the Nine-Tails."

Hiruzen was silent. Understanding dawning on his face. "How did you come up with that in just a few minutes? Even for you that seems impossible." He asked.

"Minutes? I was working on this for almost four years. Finished just two months ago." There was a hint of smile on his face. Then he turned his head again, seemingly preparing for something, like a jump or a running start, but not quite. "His name is Naruto Uzumaki. Son of Yagi and Inko Uzumaki. That is all I know." Just then he vanished into thin air.

* * *

Minato appeared besides a random house in the street. He had marks of his Hiraishin all over the village, which was very helpful in a situation like this. He could see the Nine-Tailed Fox a dozen or so meters away from him, its back turned to him. The fox had not noticed him. Good, he still had a little luck left. This would be much harder if he had appeared in front of it.

He pulled out a three-headed Kunai from his back pouch. Apart from the unusual feature of having three heads, it also had paper wrapped around it and some sealing pattern drawn, it was also larger than the average Kunai.

Minato threw the Kunai as silently as possible aiming to the Fox's head. It was very fast, way faster than the speed of sound. Just as it was about to hit the Fox's head, Minato appeared besides it, landing softly on the Nine-Tails' head and grabbing the Kunai. The Fox either hadn't noticed them yet or had, but was ignoring them thinking they pose no risk to it. Whatever it was, Minato wasn't going to question his luck right now.

Minato bent down, then gently put Naruto on the Fox's head. The fur is so thick and tall that it seemed to almost drown the newborn baby. Minato put his right hand on Naruto's stomach and his left hand on the Fox, and then closed his eyes. The familiar seals on Naruto's body appeared again and they started glowing with white light. Then, the white light started turning into red, and Minato's face turned into a grimace.

It is that moment that the Nine-Tails noticed something. It stopped dead in its tracks.

"What is it?" it asked itself in confusion, and then the realization hit, its eyes going wide. "NO!" It tried to grab the thing from its head, but it was already too late.

The Nine-Tails could not seem to move any limbs or any part of its body whatsoever. Not only that but it also started shrinking in size.

Minato's whole body was trembling. It was taking all his will to keep the process going. 'Just a little. Just a little more. And then it'll be over.'

As the Fox shrinked more and more, Minato and Naruto came closer and closer to the ground, until finally, the Fox disappeared completely, leaving them on the soft and damp ground of the Fox's giant footprint. The seals on Naruto's body became a very dark shade of red before dimming and then the light disappeared, only black sealing marks left. And in a few seconds, they too disappeared. However, on Naruto's face were now three whisker-like marks on each cheek.

Minato fell down face first on right side of Naruto, his right hand still on his stomach, no life left in him.

* * *

8 Years Ago

"I. AM. NOT DONE YET!" screamed a boy of age four, possessing spiky dark blond hair, and three thin whisker-like marks on each cheek. Which weren't quite visible in this particular instance as pretty much all of his face was covered in mud, and also some blood. He was on one knee, breathing heavily and coughing a little. Then, he tried to stand up, stumbled, then tried again, and successfully got up on his two feet.

"This kid is crazy. My mum was right. We should just keep away from him. Let's go." Said a boy of age six or seven, gesturing to two more boys of similar age. They walked back from Naruto and went their way. One boy was caressing his jaw, one was keeping a handkerchief on a scratch on his elbow. And the boy who had announced their retreat was bent down a little holding his belly while walking.

"Oh, you are hurt so much!" came a voice from behind Naruto. A girl around the same age as Naruto with dark blue hair came close to him to examine his injuries.

"Nah, I'm fine." Naruto said with a huge grin on his face, completely ignorant of the fact that his teeth were covered in blood and his upper lip was swollen. The girl took out a red handkerchief from her pocket and started rubbing off the dirt and blood from his face.

"Why did you do that?" she asked. Naruto now saw the girl properly. He didn't have time to look at her at leisure like this because he was too busy trying to beat the three boys that were bullying her and getting the crap beaten out of him for it. The girl was, truly, the cutest thing he had ever seen in his four years of life. Especially her eyes. Which had huge white, with a hint of purple, iris but no pupil. After staring at her for a few seconds, he realized that she had asked him something.

"Do what?" he questioned in return.

"Going against those boys. They were bigger than you, and they weren't after you anyway."

"Well, I don't really know. But I saw you in trouble. And I just had to do something."

'Hinata Hyuga, Where are your manners?! Someone helps you and this is how you treat them? What will father say?' she thought to herself, and then told Naruto, "I'm sorry that you had to endure this trouble because of me. Thank you for helping me." She bowed as she said this.

"Ok…" Naruto said a little confused because he had never met a kid who talked like this. Bowing? Really? Though, he found it weird, he liked the girl and her mannerisms anyway. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki. Hey, would you be my friend?" Naruto had a habit of introducing himself and then straight up asking the person to be his friend. No one had said yes yet.

'Someone just asked me to be their friend. And that someone just took a beating from three boys bigger than him. Yes, of course I would like to be friend with that person. But first, I need to introduce myself. Manners are important, as father says.'

But before she could say anything, a voice called for her.

"Lady Hinata, there you are!" a middle-aged man with similar eyes to Hinata and in a very traditional Japanese clothing said. "I understand you requested to wander around on your own, and I agreed, but I think has been enough time, if your father came to know tha-" he stopped his rambling as he looked at the boy and the situation. He quickly shoved Naruto away harshly and kept Hinata closer to him.

"Lady Hinata, are you hurt? Hey boy! If you have hurt her in any way, it will not end good for you." He said in a threatening voice. Naruto was holding his stomach where he was hit, barely being able to sit as he was already injured beforehand.

"NO! Stop it. He didn't hurt me. He saved me." Said Hinata in a much louder voice than her usual. Which surprised the adult Hyuga, as he had never heard Lady Hinata talk in such a way.

"Hmm." he mused "We should go home anyway." He took Hinata's hand and led her to her home presumably. He also threw her handkerchief away seeing how dirty it had gotten. All Hinata could do was just keep looking back until Naruto was no more in sight.

Naruto got up with difficulty and picked up the dirty handkerchief.

"What kind of rude person throws away someone's stuff? I will keep this, clean it up, and give it back to the girl when I meet her again. What was name again? Dammit! I didn't even ask."

Suddenly, Naruto felt a sharp pain in the back of the head and immediately passed out.

"So let me get this straight. You attacked the Nine-Tails container, in hopes to unleash a little bit of Nine-Tails, so that my eyes can finally be opened and I see just how dangerous the Jinchuriki is, and then lock him up for the rest of his life. Is that it?" asked Sarutobi, the current Hokage.

"Yes." Said the man who was asked this question. Who was an ANBU no less, though a newbie. His answer was completely serious and genuine. It would be an understatement to say that Hiruzen was angry.

"You do know the difference between a Jinchuriki and the actual Tailed-Beast, right?" Hiruzen asked slowly.

"Yes, I do. And I also know that Jinchurikis aren't perfect containers for Tailed-Beasts. There have been multiple instances of a Jinchuriki losing control. Are we really just going to wait for it to happen? I think we should never let the kid be in open. I know he's not the Nine-Tails, but he contains it, and it's dangerous. I'm just choosing to sacrifice one kid's life for the sake of the whole village. Isn't that what the fourth Hokage did?"

"How dare you compare yourself to the fourth? Why am I even entertaining you? Get this man out of my sight." Two of the three ANBUs that were present took the guy and quickly disappeared.

Hiruzen sighed, his age showing on his face.

"How is he?"

"No permanent damage. But he will be in the hospital for a few days." Answered the remaining ANBU who had a dog mask and white hair.

"Any effect from the Nine-Tails?"

"Not one bit."

"It really hasn't changed his body in any way, hasn't it? Apart from the whisker marks."

"And no special powers either, which all the other Jinchurikis seems to have, from all the intel we have. All Naruto has is huge Chakra reserves, which is to be expected from a Jinchuriki."

"Minato's seal is really something else. If I didn't know already, it'd be hard for me to believe that Naruto was a Jinchuriki. Is the Nine-Tails really not influencing him at all?"

"Well…"

"Well?" Hiruzen said with worry.

"Naruto has mentioned having nightmares to doctors whenever asked if something was wrong. Too many times for them to be just nightmares."

"But I've always seen him just happy-go-lucky."

"Yes. Which makes it more concerning."

Hiruzen nods. Did all the Jinchurikis had this trouble? Who knows, it's not like the other villages would be willing to share these types of information. All Konoha had was to rely on the common knowledge already acquired, some theories and rest just plain assumptions.

"I'm still surprised that not even a little bit of Nine-Tails Chakra leaked. Isn't it common for it to leak in dangerous and life threatening situations? Even if the Tailed-Beast is unwilling, which it always is." Hiruzen mused.

"From what Jiraiya sensei seems to understand from studying the seal. It seems that unless Naruto is on the verge of dying, as in really really dying, Nine-Tails Chakra won't leak or help him in any way. From what little I could hear in the hospital wing, that is."

"Hmm. Send Jiraiya after he gets done."

"As you say, Lord Hokage." Said the ANBU as he disappeared.

* * *

Author's notes:

Now, let's answer the most obvious question and doubt everyone who has been reading fanfiction have when starting a new story. Will I finish this? And the answer is... I. Do. Not. Know. All I can promise is that I will write it as long as its fun to write. The moment it becomes more of a chore than fun, it will end. And no amount of requests(Ha! assuming that people would want to read a new story by a complete novice """"writer"""") would change my mind.

The frequency of chapter updates? No clue. Depends on my time, seeing that I have a job(yes, I do), and well... as I said, how fun it is to write this story than doing other fun stuff.

That's the general things. Now on to what kind of story its going to be:

-Some people will be stronger and some will be weaker than in canon. If you don't like your favourite character not as strong as canon or vice versa, sorry.

-Some jutsus will work differently than canon. Don't comment just say how this and that jutsu doesn't work like that. Most likely I would be aware. Point out if you find inconsistency in MY story.

-Some of the mythology and powers will be different. And some will be outright removed. And I'm going to name main ones that I'm going to remove right here. So you can decide if you still want to read this story. Sage of Six Paths, Kaguya, Chakra Tree, The Zetsu. These do not exist in my fic.

-Rinnegan won't have anything to do with Sharingan. Mangekyu Sharingan does not exist.

-As mentioned in the summery, but I will repeat again. THE UCHIHAS WILL ONLY BE SIDE CHARACTERS. They won't even be one of the important supporting characters. And Naruto is not going to have any obsession, or friendship, or rivalry, or anything with Sasuke. Don't think there will be Uchiha bashing though.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"How are you feeling, boy?" Naruto looked up as he heard the voice. He was sitting on the hospital bed, in white hospital gown that he hated as soon as he had woken up. The voice belonged to an old man with a weird hat. Naruto thought he had seen him somewhere.

"I'm fine." He said trying to figure out where he had seen the old man before. Then it hit him, he immediately looked out of the window, stared for a second with his mouth agap a little, then snapped his head back to the man. "You're one of the faces on that mountain with faces! You're like, the Ninja King of our village!" He said excitedly.

The old man chuckled. "Ninja King? I suppose it isn't too far off. My name is Hiruzen Sarutobi. The third Hokage of Konoha." He said as he gave a curt nod.

"Oh! I should give proper respect!" Naruto tried to stand up, but Hiruzen quickly put his hand on Naruto's shoulder, "There is no need. You are still injured." He said.

"So tell me, do you remember how you got here?" Hiruzen asked.

"No. All I remember is walking in park and… that's it. I don't remember anything after that. I woke up here." Naruto answered.

"That's okay. After a traumatic incident like you have suffered, it is normal for a person to lose their memory of a couple of minute and sometimes even a few hours." Hiruzen said politely. "As for what that traumatic incident was, you were attacked."

"Why would anyone attack me?"

"Because the person who attacked you was a bad man, Naruto. Bad people do bad things." Hiruzen could see that Naruto wasn't quite satisfied with the answer, so he changed the topic. "Are you really fine, Naruto? You can tell me anything. Even if it's unrelated to the situation right now."

Naruto contemplated for a moment, Hiruzen gave him time.

"Well… there is this thing. Not sure if you are the right person to talk to about it." His eyes lit up a little. "Or maybe you are the best person!"

"Yes, tell me." Hiruzen invited.

"I want to become a ninja! Just like you, and those people in weird masks, and others I've seen!"

Hiruzen was taken aback. He had not expected that. "Umm. Why do you want to be become a Ninja, Naruto?" he asked gently.

"Because ninja are the coolest! They can jump really high and run really fast! I've seen a few walking on water and walls! I've seen one breathing fire! But most of all, they help people and everyone respects them for it!"

Hiruzen kept looking at the boy, "How do you know that ninja help people?"

"What do you mean how?!" Naruto asked incredulously. "I've seen it! I've seen them helping old ladies and rescuing cats and so many other things. And I've heard how they bravely go out of our village and risk their lives for our benefits. I've heard how they have saved many people from bandits and thugs and ninjas from other villages.

"That's why I want to become a ninja. The best ninja ever! Can I become a ninja? Would you let me?" Naruto said in a pleading voice.

Hiruzen wasn't sure what to do. On one hand, he wanted to protect the Jinchuriki. On the other hand, he saw a kid not unlike his own grandson. He also wanted for him to live a normal and free life as much as possible.

There was also Danzo to consider. Who kept insisting to give the Jinchuriki to him make him the most dangerous weapon Konoha had. Hiruzen was never going to give Naruto to him.

But just leaving him as it is didn't seem like the best course of action either. At some point, Naruto will and have to come to know what he is. If he had at least some basic knowledge of Chakra and Tailed Beasts, it'd be better for everyone.

"So you really want to become a ninja? You are absolutely sure?" Hiruzen asked.

"Absolutely!" Naruto answered.

"As you wish then. I will register you to ninja academy." Hiruzen said to the excited boy. "Well, now with that out of the way. Let's discuss the other thing I came here for. Your parents."

Naruto's eyes went wide. "You knew my parents?"

"Not personally, no. I just thought you should know as much you could about your them. I suppose you already know their names?"

"Yes. Inko and Yagi Uzumaki."

"Very well. I don't think you'd know anything more than that?"

Naruto shook his head sadly.

"Well, your mother was a tailor. Was quite a bit popular among ladies from what I remember. And your father was an artist. Just like his grandfather, who actually played a crucial role in the foundation of Konoha."

"Really?! How?"

Hiruzen took off his Hokage hat. "You see this headband?" he said pointing his finger. "This hidden leaf village symbol that every ninja in Konoha proudly wears on their person, was made by your great grandfather."

"Really?" Naruto asked excitedly.

"Yes. That is why it has a spiral in it." Hiruzen remembered the story Tobirama sensei told him once. How Hashirama sensei was not satisfied with dozens and dozens of designs for the hidden leaf symbol. Until a man named Kishimoto Uzumaki came with a weird design for a leaf that consisted a spiral in it. When asked, he answered that he tried to put his name in every piece of art he made. Though he would minimize it or maybe even remove it if they didn't like it seeing that maybe he went too far that time. However, Hashirama sensei liked it very much. Tobirama sensei used to say that if it were up to him, he would've gone with just a simple leaf drawing. Hashirama sensei would answer and he would quote, "Konoha will not have its creativity questioned when it has just been founded! Nor it will ever!" Hiruzen smiled remembering that particular quote.

"Woah…" Naruto was clearly impressed.

"Yes, well. If that is all, I would take my leave. Take care Naruto." Hiruzen said as he left the hospital room.

Naruto kept looking at the door for a moment. Then he turned his head to the bedside table. His clothes, wallet and few other things were on it. The nurse had asked him to see if anything was missing. He didn't keep many things with him besides his wallet. And that was safe. So he was satisfied. But then he saw a red handkerchief. He picked it up. "I don't remember buying this." He said to himself.

* * *

4 Years Ago

"I told you he would go mental."

"I it really the time to gloat at me, Kakashi?" Hiruzen said taking away his eyes from the six dead bodies. They were at the outskirts of Uchiha compounds.

"I'm not gloating. Just telling you that we had the time and opportunity to avoid this. But we didn't." Kakashi said as he bent down and turned over a body, looking at the dead eyes of Uchiha Shisui. He didn't know the boy that well. But he seemed like a good person from whatever the little interactions he had with him.

"Why do you think he did this?" Hiruzen asked.

"Because he went mental." Hiruzen looked at him with half closed eyes. Kakashi sighed.

"He always wanted to prove that he was the best. The most powerful. It's the reason why he kept on challenging me to a duel. Look at all these people. These were considered the best ninja the Uchihas had to offer. He wanted to prove his superiority. Ask his father when he wakes up. I can guarantee you he will say the same."

"Fine. Announce Uchiha Itachi as rogue ninja from Konoha. Kill on sight order. You know. The usual. Do you have any idea where he could've gone?" Hiruzen asked.

"Sorry, no. But I suppose he would go wherever he thinks he could become more powerful and gets to prove that."

* * *

1 Year Ago

"What do you want me to do? Sabotage his papers? Intentionally teach him the wrong moves? Purposefully ignore him? You think the other students would not notice?!" Imino Iruka said angrily to the Hokage. He would never talk with that tone with him. But what he was asking was impossible.

"I told you when I registered him in the academy. He should just learn the basics. He should not become a ninja!" Hiruzen said with a loud voice.

"And how, pray tell, am I suppose to do that? Just fail him for no reason? Expel him? For what? Doing some pranks? Again, how am I supposed to do this without making others highly suspicious? Just out him as a Jinchuriki and give that reason for why he can't become a ninja, if you really want to. It's not like it's a well hidden secret anyway. All the adults know it. And it's a miracle the kids haven't found it out yet."

"I'm not outing him as a Jinchuriki!"

"And why is that?" A new voice asked. Jiraiya, one of the great Sannin.

"Because I want him to have a normal life as long as possible." Hiruzen stated flately.

"The kid is a Jinchuriki. His life ceased being normal since that fateful night eleven years ago. Why did you let him enter the academy if you never wanted him to become a ninja?"

"Because I thought it would be better for everyone if he had basic knowledge of Chakra and Tailed Beasts. I also wanted to keep him away from Danzo's hands. But I don't want him in dangerous situations ninja frequently find themselves in. Who knows what could happen if the Nine-Tails got loose?"

"So just lock him up for the rest of his life." Jiraiya said shrugging.

"How can you even suggest that?" Hiruzen asked in whisper of a voice.

"How can I? You just said you're afraid of the Nine-Tails getting loose. If that is a concern, then locking him up is the best option."

Hiruzen was silent at that. Then Jiraiya asked, "Why did you really let him enter the academy?"

Hiruzen closed his eyes and inhaled, "Because he reminded me of my grandson. I couldn't see that innocent boy's one little wish turned down. I wanted him to be free to do whatever he liked, at least as much as I could reasonably allow."

"Except that there is no such thing as partial freedom. Either you're free or you're not. If you want him to be free, let him be free. But if you don't, then don't. You can't have it both ways.

"I'm not saying one option is better than the other. Or if there even is a good option. But I would suggest to let him be a ninja. Look at Kumo, they somehow have a Jinchuriki that is in perfect control of its Tailed Beast, if the reports are to be believed that is.

"Besides that, it's been eleven years, and even after few incidents of people intentionally trying to provoke the Nine-Tails to come out, it hasn't happened. I'm telling you, Minato's seal is unlike anything I've ever seen. It'll hold for a lot."

Jiraiya looked at his sensei expectantly. After a moment that seemed like a while, Hiruzen nodded.

"Fine. How is his academic progress anyway?" Hiruzen asked looking at Iruka.

Iruka smiled and said, "He is, in every sense of the word, a certified ninja nerd. He knows pretty much every single theory behind Jutsu and Chakra like the back of his hand. His knowledge of Konoha and ninja history is by far the vastest I've ever seen with a student. It's like he has read every single book in our library. I honestly don't say it in a joking manner.

"His Taijutsu skills are amazing. But unorthodox. He doesn't really have a particular style. He follows the basic academy style, but only to an extent. It's much more reactive and unpredictable. No idea where he got it from. Because when he started, he was just following instructions like everyone else.

"Also, his stamina and pure physical strength is off the charts. I've seen him just manhandle other students who were technically more skilled but were simply physically weaker than him. Also, he's very fast.

"And what surprises me is that he was very average when he started. He had one of the steepest growth curves I've seen. By the time he graduates, I say he would be top of the class in physical combat." After a pause he said, "His Chakra control sucks though."

"That is expected from a Jinchuriki. Seeing their abnormally large Chakra reserves." Jiraiya stated matter-of-factly.

"He tries very hard though. It took him quite some time to walk on trees and walls. But he got it down eventually. Having said that, he still can't make a clone. I think Genjutsu is just not something he'd ever be capable of.

"He is really good at strategy and tactics though. And his shuriken and kunai skills are also quite good."

"So no matter what, he would pass the academy." Hiruzen asked.

"With flying colours." Iruka answered with a smile. It was clear that Iruka quite liked the boy.

* * *

As Naruto was walking home, he thought about how he was different. He had known for a long time that he was different. He didn't know how he was different, but he just knew he was.

He knew because he was certain his whisker like marks on his cheeks weren't normal, and they most certainly weren't tattoos.

He knew because of the fearful way most adults looked at him, like he was some tiger that was going to eat them. He knew because how most shops either didn't let him enter or if they did, they wanted him gone as soon as possible. He even had things given(practically thrown) to him for free, with pleadings not to hurt them or kill them.

Naruto did not understand why so many people thought he wanted to kill them. Was it because he was in the ninja academy? That can't be true, because he had seen other kids going to shopping normally who were also in the ninja academy.

Speaking of ninja academy, he liked it very much. Though, even there, he had come across some weird encounters.

There was one teacher who didn't bother teaching him Taijutsu stances properly, even when he intentionally did them wrong. When Naruto asked for help, the teacher said that he didn't really need to learn these things anyway. The teacher was suspended the next day, and Naruto didn't get to see him for a month. When he came back, he started treating Naruto equally, though Naruto had once heard him grumble, "Still don't get the point of teaching him anything." Unsurprisingly, Naruto was confused by his weird behavior.

There was another incident a year later. A teacher kept telling him that he expected much more from Naruto. That he wasn't showing his true potential. At that point Naruto thought that the teacher just had very high standards. But he actually turned out to be a complete maniac. The teacher once asked Naruto to stay behind after their last class. Then he took him to a very secluded training ground. And then he just suddenly started beating him. While he kept shouting, "Come on, Naruto! Show me your true power! I know it's there! Let it out!" Naruto didn't know what power he was talking about. He did know that if this kept going on he'll end up dead. Luckily for him, only a few minutes later an ANBU came and easily knocked that teacher out. He also took Naruto to the hospital. The teacher was fired the next day and was locked up in prison.

There were also other things. Not as extreme as the two before. Little things. But they still added to the fact that Naruto was different. Like How he had insanely high Chakra reserves. One of his classmates, Hinata, had pointed it out with her Byakugan when it first activated. Iruka sensei had just said that it happened sometimes. While Naruto knew that it was possible to have naturally high Chakra reserve, the way Hinata had said that Naruto's Chakra reserves dwarfed even her father's, had Naruto's suspicion growing.

By the way, Naruto didn't know what to make of Hinata. The first time he had met her, she acted like she was disappointed with him or something. Though she never talked rudely to him, when she talked to him at all that is. Naruto had also felt her staring at him many times, but when he looked back, she would immediately look away.

When Naruto was in orphanage, he had no friends. And he was certain that the adults had told the other kids not to get along with him. The orphanage adults also seemed to be afraid of him. And absolutely no one was willing to adopt him. By the time he was eight, he asked to be let go from the orphanage and live alone.

The Hokage himself had come to tell Naruto to not leave the orphanage. (This also added to his suspicions. Why was the Hokage so interested in some random orphan's life?)

However, Naruto kept insisting. The white haired ANBU that had come with the Hokage said something quietly to him. And after a brief conversation that Naruto couldn't hear, the Hokage agreed to let him live alone.

Finding a house for Naruto was also really hard. Not because of money. Being an orphan and a ninja academy student, he got enough stipend to pay for a rent if he wanted. But the house-lords just refused to let him even come inside their house. Then the Hokage sent the civilian council head, Hisoka Torino, with Naruto. He seemed like a very nice person.

With him along, the house-lords behaved much better. At least they didn't just close the door on him like they've seen a ghost and screamed for him to get out of there. But they still didn't agree for him to be a tenant.

At last, one person agreed. Though the area was less than ideal, seeing that it was very near the red light district(not how you want to find out about the birds and the bees, Naruto would tell you from experience), the house was alright. Though the neighbouring apartments were mostly empty.

Hisoka apologized to Naruto that he couldn't get him a better house. But Naruto was just happy that he got one.

And the most weird and kind of scary thing was the voice. The voice that he sometimes heard. Except that calling it a voice wasn't right. It was like his own thoughts, but not quite. Like someone else is thinking in his head, but it's also him. Yeah, it didn't make much sense to Naruto either. Even that "voice" never made any sense. He just knew he shouldn't do what the "voice" told him to do that he couldn't understand anyway.

And also, the nightmares. Those were absolutely terrifying. He felt embarrassed to admit that he was so afraid of nightmares. After all, everyone gets those. Though, Naruto doubted if people got them as regularly as him. And he wasn't sure why but those nightmares felt too real. And he would never remember what happened in those nightmares. Just that it scared the crap out of him.

All these things pointed to the fact that Naruto was different. But how? He kept thinking as he reached his apartment. He kept thinking about it as he untied the red handkerchief from his forehead that he wore everyday. He kept thinking about it as he took a shower. He kept thinking about it as he changed into night clothes and went to bed. He fell asleep thinking about that.

* * *

_Naruto woke up… wait, something was wrong. He wasn't awake, but he wasn't asleep. He looked around and saw… nothing? The void? He looked down(?) and saw the same nothingness. This was weird. But more than that, it was scary. Whatever this place was, Naruto wanted to get out of here as quickly as possible. There was something in here. Something too terrifying for words to describe. He had to get out of here._

_Then he heard something. From everywhere? From nowhere? In his own head like that "voice"? He didn't understand. But he wanted to leave this place. He had been here for not a… wait how long has he been here? Seconds? Minutes? Hours? This place was creeping him out more and more._

_Then he "saw" bars. Bars like prison. Bars of colours he couldn't comprehend and size he couldn't grasp. Bars that were so close to him he couldn't move and still an eternity away from him. Bars that were going till infinity in every direction, whatever direction meant in this place. And behind those bars…_

* * *

Naruto woke up, _really woke up_, with an earsplitting scream. He was breathing like he had run a thousand miles non-stop and then some more. His heart was beating so fast and hard it felt like it could just burst out from his chest at any moment.

He remembered the nightmare this time. Except it wasn't a nightmare. It was real. What he saw behind those bars…

He started crying just thinking about it. Tears of pure terror. It took him half an hour to get himself to some semblance of calmness.

Finally, he knew why he was different. What made him different. What made people afraid of him. Except he was the most terrified of them all.

He realized after a moment that his bed felt moist. He looked down and saw that he had peed in his pants. Good, something to distract himself with, he thought as he got up and started changing his pants and bedsheets.

Sleep would not come to him that night, or the next few.

* * *

Hiruzen looked at Naruto as he came into his office. His usual cheerful self was nowhere to be seen.

Iruka had reported no less than five panic attacks in the last three days. Though Naruto was still cheerful most of the time, or at least tried to be. But Iruka was certain something had happened. When finally asked, instead of answering, Naruto asked to meet with the Hokage. And so, he was here.

"What happened Naruto? Why did you want to meet me?" Hiruzen asked kindly.

Naruto closed his eyes, took a breath, and said in a low voice, "I'm the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, aren't I?"

Hiruzen tried to suppress his shock, though his eyes betrayed him. Iruka wasn't as subtle. He all but screamed, "WHAT?! Who told you that?"

"No one. I kind of met the Nine-Tails. I won't tell you any more than that. I don't want to even think about it." He suddenly started breathing heavily. He was almost on the verge of another panic attack, but he calmed himself. "It's true. Isn't it? I just want to hear it from you." He said not looking away from the Hokage.

"Yes, it's true." Hiruzen said solemnly.

"It was the fourth Hokage, wasn't he? The night that he defeated the Nine-Tails. It's the same day as my birth. Not to mention it is never said anywhere how he defeated the Nine-Tails. Just that he did."

"Yes, Naruto. Minato sealed the Nine-Tails inside you. I know it may not mean much to you, but you should know he was very sad that he had to sacrifice a child to defeat the Nine-Tails."

"No, I understand. At least now I know why people are so afraid of me. Maybe I would do the same if I were in their place. Gives me another goal in life. To show that they have nothing to fear from me. I would never let the Nine-Tails hurt anyone."

Hiruzen was amazed by the maturity shown by the boy. He was certain that Naruto would hate the villagers, and him and Minato too.

"Don't think you'll go scot free though." Naruto said pointedly. Maybe Hiruzen spoke(thought) too soon.

"You and the fourth Hokage aren't getting off that easy." He said in a very serious tone.

"What do you want from me and deceased Minato?" Hiruzen asked in a monotone.

"Oh, not what I want. What I'll do. And you won't be able to stop me."

"What will you do Naruto?"

"For the crappy life the Fourth sentenced me to, and for you to let it happen, I will…" Naruto paused as Hiruzen, Iruka and the hidden ANBUs paid utmost attention to his every word. "…vandalize the Hokage monument!"

Hiruzen almost laughed out loud. But controlled himself to only giving a chuckle. Iruka though, started scolding, "How many times I've told you to stop the stupid pranks! And now you're just announcing it in front of the Hokage? Listen to me Naruto, if you even attempt to do what you just said I'll give you a punishment you'll have a hard time forgetting for the rest of your ninja career!"

"Easy Iruka. It's not like Naruto will be able to pull off it anyway." Hiruzen said in a kind voice.

"I most certainly will pull it off!" Naruto almost screamed.

"Sure, Naruto."

"I will!" Iruka started dragging Naruto away from the Hokage's office while scolding him some more.

"Mark my words old man!" Naruto's voice was heard as the door behind him and Iruka closed. "I will do it!"

* * *

Present Day

"He did it." Jiraiya said as he looked out from the window the Hokage's office. "It's actually really nice." He said as he looked at his sensei.

"What is so nice about me having derpy eyes and buckteeth?" Hiruzen asked. His expression was neutral. But he was clearly amused and even impressed that Naruto pulled off his promise of a prank from a year ago.

"I mean how he made it look so good. At this large scale, it's not easy at all. The boy has a real artistic talent." Jiraiya said as he observed Minato's head. Naruto had made it look like he had a running nose like a five year old. It looked damn funny.

"Yes. Iruka has mentioned he has a knack for drawing. Anyway, as much as I appreciate Naruto's artistic talents, give someone the D-Rank mission to clean up the Hokage monument."

* * *

"Any reason why I shouldn't give you the worst punishment ever given in the academy?" Iruka asked Naruto barely suppressing his anger.

"Because this is the last day of the academy and you have to announce the results?" Naruto pleaded. Iruka exhaled from his nostrils. "Fine. But one more disturbance from you, and I'll make clean up all the bathrooms and toilets in the academy for the next whole week!" Naruto nodded.

They went in and Iruka started calling everyone who passed and giving them their headband. Eventually, Naruto's name was called. He had passed of course, he had no doubt about it. Iruka gave him his headband. Naruto took away the red handkerchief he always wore on his head, his head was getting too big for the handkerchief. So instead, he tied it around his neck and put the Konoha headband on his forehead.

He was really proud of himself with the performance in the academy. He had even won the small tournament from their final year.

He did feel a little sad that he still couldn't perform the most basic Genjutsu of a clone. He knew it was because of his large Chakra reserves and clone Jutsu wasn't much useful in combat anyway, as Iruka said. It was only useful against common mooks, because any ninja worth their salt would see through Clone Jutsu. It was just taught for the understanding of basic Genjutsu, which he was never going to be good at.

"Okay Class. That concludes your final year. I hope you all become great ninja and have a long career. Your team placements and Jonin sensei will be announced a week from today." Iruka said marking the conclusion of the day.

As Naruto was walking out of the academy, Mizuki sensei stopped him.

* * *

"So old man, is there any extra credit given to academy student who completes some task after they graduate, like stealing the Forbidden Scroll or something?" Naruto asked as he walked into the Hokage's office.

"Uh… no." Hiruzen answered newly graduated Naruto's weird question.

"Hmm. Thought so. Just so you know, I think Mizuki is trying to steal the Forbidden Scroll and give it to someone, essentially betraying the village. I would know, because he asked me to steal it calling it a "secret task to get extra credit."" Naruto said nonchalantly.

Hiruzen groaned and made a motion to a hidden ANBU as he disappeared.

"Anything else, Naruto?" Hiruzen asked in a bored voice.

"Well, I think I deserve some reward."

"For what?" Hiruzen humoured him.

"Well, first of all. I vandalized the Hokage monument, just as promised. And it was bloody difficult I tell you! Took me six attempts. Some expensive near invisible paint that reacts to sunlight. Had to buy clothes that are difficult to see in the night. Had to wait for a new moon night so I can't be easily seen.

"And also, I graduated today. Even won the mini academy tournament. And what did I get for that? Not even a thumbs up, that's what!

"Not to mention, I just exposed a village traitor! That damn well deserves some reward!" Naruto said in an exaggeratedly serious tone.

"Very busy day, I see. So what do you want?" Hiruzen asked.

"Well, seeing that I kept the Forbidden Scroll from being stolen. I should get a forbidden Jutsu from that." Naruto said nodding his head sagely.

"Hmm. Okay."

"What?!" Naruto was dumbfounded. Hiruzen took a paper from his desk and started writing something.

"I said okay. You will get one Forbidden Jutsu." Hiruzen kept writing.

"You know I was joking, right?"

"I took it seriously anyway." After a few moments, he was done with the writing. "Here." He gave the paper to Naruto.

"You are not messing with me, are you? This isn't some random crap you just wrote down, is it?"

"Are you calling me a liar, Naruto?" Hiruzen asked with a grin.

"No." Naruto said as he looked down at the paper. "Wait! Shadow Clone? You knew I suck at Clone Jutsu so you gave me a variation of it knowing that I won't be able to do it anyway!"

"I mean, if you don't want it…" He motioned to take away the paper.

"I want it!" Naruto clutched the paper to his chest and got up to leave the Hokage office.

As he left and the door closed, a new voice said, "Was it really wise?" It was a man with white hair and a dog mask.

"Bah! He'll be fine. The only reason Shadow Clone is a forbidden Jutsu is because of its extremely high Chakra requirement. Naruto already fulfils the requirement. So he's not going to kill himself trying to produce a Shadow Clone. I have given him safety instructions. Naruto is smart enough to know not to mess with a forbidden Jutsu without any precaution. And in the slight chance he does learn it, it's not like he'll hurt anyone with it. I don't think he'll be able to learn it anyway.

"Be ready for next week, by the way. It's the end of your ANBU career and start of a Jonin instructor."

* * *

"Who made these teams?!" Hiruzen asked in an irritated manner looking at the academy instructors who were appointed to allot students in the latest batch of fresh Genin teams. One instructor in particular was looking anywhere but at Hiruzen.

Hiruzen groaned. Every year the team allotments had to be approved by the Hokage. The teams were usually selected at random and Hiruzen had to rarely make any adjustment. This year though…

"These are the two worst team allotments I've ever see. I know this isn't where you should put the most thought in. But that does not mean you just leave your brain at the doorstep.

"What is this? Shikamaru Nara, Ino Yamanaka and Chouji Akimichi. Are you trying to recreate the Ino-Shika-Cho combo for the next generation? Just because their parents worked very well together doesn't mean they will too.

"This one is even worse though. An Inuzuka, An Aburame and a Hyuga in the same team? Does the word 'redundancy' exist in your dictionary?" One particular instructor really flinched at that.

Hiruzen sighed and started crossing the papers and making new allotments.

* * *

"Team 7 will be Shino Aburame, Sakura Haruno and Sasuke Uchiha." Iruka announced to the class. Sakura jumped with joy hearing that she will be in the same team with Sasuke.

"And your Jonin sensei will be Kakashi Hatake." Iruka said after Sakura had calmed down.

"Holy shit! You got Kakashi!" Naruto said in an almost scream.

"Language, Naruto!" Iruka scolded.

"What's so special about Kakashi?" Sasuke asked in his usual cold manner.

"What's so spe- are you kidding me? He's freaking Kakashi Hatake! The legendary copy ninja! He was the youngest Chunin ever at the age of seven. Not to mention he is one of the only two ninja from Konoha who not only became Chunin on their first attempt, but also won the Chunin exam. He is also the youngest Jonin ever at the age of ten. He was also the youngest to create a new A-Rank Jutsu. He is said to be able to copy most techniques by seeing them only once. He also has a Sharingan. And you're asking me what's so special about Kakashi Freaking Hatake?" Naruto said in a single breath.

"Hmm. Sharingan, huh?" Sasuke stated in a monotone.

"That's the only thing you got?!" Naruto said ducking his head.

"Naruto!" Iruka said in a loud voice.

"Oh sensei, go on. I really can't wait to know about my team and sensei." Naruto said excitedly. Iruka groaned as he called another team.

"Team 8 will be Ino Yamanaka, Hinata Hyuga and Naruto Uzumaki. Your Jonin sensei will be Kurenai Yuhi."

"The Genjutsu mistress of Konoha? Aww, I suck at Genjutsu." Naruto whined as he looked at his two new teammates. Ino looked to be still disappointed that she didn't get to be on the same team with Sasuke. And Hinata… seemed neutral? He was sure just a second ago she was staring at him.

"Team 9 is still in circulation. So Team 10 will be Shikamaru Nara, Chouji Akimichi and Kiba Inuzuka. Your Jonin sensei will be Asuma Sarutobi." Iruka said paying no mind to Naruto.

"Does my sensei have any fancy title, Naruto?" Chouji asked from two rows down him as he munched his potato chips.

"Not that I know of. But he's the son of our Hokage. He was also part of the '12 Guardian Ninja'. He must be good. Oh, he has wind affinity. Which isn't common in our fire country." Naruto said while nodding.

"That concludes the team allotments. Wait here. Your Jonin sensei will be here shortly." Iruka said as he walked away from classroom.

"Where do you even get all this information?" Shikamaru asked who was right beside Chouji.

"It's in the Konoha ninja public records." Naruto answered like it was the most obvious thing in the world as he went near to Hinata. She stiffened. But didn't look at him

"Do you dislike me?" Naruto asked with a smile as he sat down beside her.

"What?!" Hinata faced him with a start. That was a very sudden and unexpected question. She composed herself and said, "No, Naruto. I do not dislike you."

"Thought not. Frankly, I don't know what to make of you Hinata. But as long as you don't hate me, it's fine, I guess. Just thought we should know each other better now that we're teammates. Speaking of teammates." Naruto got up and yelled, "Hey, Ino! Come here! Sit with us!" Ino looked at him and groaned but came there nonetheless.

"Nice handkerchief." Hinata said quietly. Naruto looked down his neck. "It is, isn't it? Though I have no idea where I got it from."

Hinata immediately seemed much more interested. "What do you mean?"

"See, when I was little, I had a really bad accident. And as it goes, you can forget several minutes and sometimes even hours of memories before the accident. So when I woke up in the hospital, I had this beautiful handkerchief in my possession with no recollection where I got it from. But I have a feeling that I didn't buy it. I don't know, this just seems special. So I've been wearing it ever since. I know, silly right?"

Hinata kept looking at him for a few seconds. She seemed a bit sad for some reason, but tried to not show it. She eventually said with a smile, "No, Naruto. I don't think it's silly." By that time, Ino had reached to them. She asked as he sat down besides them, "So anything else you know about our sensei?"

"Besides that she's supposed to be a Genjutsu expert? Not really." He told her. "So tell me something about yourself."

"Why don't you tell me something about yourself first?" Ino shot back.

"Hmm. I have insanely high Chakra reserves."

"I already knew that!"

"Ah, right. How about this, I know a forbidden Jutsu." Ino looked at him unamused. "You really want me to believe that?"

"Well, it's true!" Naruto proclaimed. "Okay, how did you learn it?" Ino asked.

"The Hokage gave me the instructions."

"Why would the Hokage give you instructions for a forbidden Jutsu?"

"Because I helped him catch a traitor to the village."

"And when did that happen?"

"A week ago. The day we graduated."

"So you want to believe that just a week ago, you helped the Hokage catch a traitor to the village, and in reward he gave you instructions for a forbidden Jutsu. And you manage to learn it in a week?"

"It's true!" Naruto kept proclaiming.

"Sure it is."

Just then, a beautiful woman with unusually red eyes and very dark hair came through the door. "Team 8?" She asked in a sweet voice. Ino raised her hand. Kurenai smiled. "I'm Kurenai Yuhi, your Jonin sensei. Come with me." The newly formed Team 8 followed.

* * *

Kurenai led them to small empty training ground and sat on a log. She motioned her students to also sit down.

"Let's start with introductions, shall we? Names, Likes, dislikes, dreams, or anything you want to tell about yourself. And if you don't want to, that's okay too. Just remember, this is your team, and will be for quite some time if all goes well. These people most likely will become your closest friends. So don't feel embarrassed about sharing.

"I'll start with me. My name you already know. I like pretty things and am not ashamed to say it. A bouquet of flowers given to me by anyone makes my day. My dream… I already kind of achieved it. I wanted to prove that you can become a successful ninja on the strength of Genjutsu alone. Now I have to maintain that position. I dislike rude people who say mean things when they start losing.

"Now what about you?" She asked pointing to Hinata.

Hinata took a deep breath. "My name is Hinata Hyuga. My dream is to unite my clan and end the discrimination against the branch family. I want to free my cousin from his curse seal, and so many others like him."

Kurenai nodded. "Why don't you go next?" Kurenai asked with a charming smile to Ino.

"My name is Ino Yamanaka. I want to become worthy enough to lead my clan in the future. I dislike people who have no sense of fashion." She gave Naruto a glance. "And I also want…" she paused and started fidgeting. Kurenai gently motioned her to go on. "I also want to have a nice husband who will love me the most in the world." She said in a very low voice to the point the last bit went almost unheard. She was clearly very embarrassed.

"There is nothing wrong with wanting a good home life, Ino. Don't ever feel ashamed for that." Kurenai said encouragingly. Ino beamed at this.

Naruto didn't wait for Kurenai to ask him. He said in the booming voice, "My name is Naruto Uzumaki. My dream is to become the greatest ninja that ever was and help as many people as I can. I like learning about any and all type of Jutsu and ninja and their history. I also like Ramen, which is the best food ever made, no arguments! I dislike people who hurt others for no reason, and people who use their powers for bad instead of using them for good!"

"Very well. Nice to meet you all, Hinata, Ino, Naruto. I think it's good enough for today. Come to training ground ten tomorrow, I'll take your final test to determine if you're worthy of becoming a Genin or not." She said sweetly as she started walking away from them without looking back.

"Final test?" Naruto asked to no one in particular.

"Yes. My father told me about it. Some Jonin sensei take a test of their own choice even after you've graduated from the academy. It could be anything." Ino said looking at the direction Kurenai had gone.

"So we should train, right?" Naruto asked his teammates.

"You're right, we should." Ino said while Hinata simply nodded.

"Good. Let's discuss each other's skills and powers. Then I'll show you my forbidden Jutsu that Ino here refuses to believe I learned!"

"Sure you did."

* * *

Kurenai smiled at her potential students as she came to the training ground next day.

"So, are you ready for the test?"

"Yes." "We are." "Absolutely."

Kurenai nodded with her charismatic smile still in place.

"What is the test?" Naruto asked.

"Ah. Your test…" she sat down casually to the ground. "…is simply this." She waited as she had all their attention. "Impress me." She grinned.

All three Genins looked at each other, then to their sensei. Then, Naruto motioned them to get far away from Kurenai's sight.

* * *

Impress me? _Impress me?_ Really? That's the best you could come up with, Kurenai? She mentally scolded herself. Though on the outside, she still had a joyful expression.

Would it have killed her to ask for some suggestions from the Hokage or even other Jonins? But no. She had to do this test herself. Fine. But did she spend the previous day carefully planning what her test was going to be? Of course not. What was the term she had used? Oh yes, she would just 'wing it'. Turned out really well, didn't it? Impress me. Seriously.

There was no point in keep berating herself though. Now she really would have to just wing it. At least her Genins were smarter than her. At least they had spent the previous day training. She purposefully didn't want to know what training they did. But she was happy that they were already getting along well enough to train together.

She didn't have much time to dwell on that as she dodged a kunai to the head. Keeping their distance, not bad thinking, she thought. Then there was a shuriken thrown, which she also dodged. Then there was another pair of kunai and shuriken, and then another, and then another. They just kept coming.

They were easy to dodge, but Kurenai realized that they were making her move towards a certain direction. She looked a little far at the ground. It was covered very nicely. She had to give them credit. But it was a one day job in the end, and it was visible if you knew what you were looking for. They were trying to lure her into a trap. She pulled out a kunai herself and instead of dodging, she smacked all the incoming weapons away. After the barrage was over, there was a silence for a few minutes.

"Is that all?" She asked loudly. "I'm not impressed yet." Her tone still remained sweet though.

A few moments later, Naruto came charging through like a bull. She first thought he would engage her in Taijutsu. But he didn't. When he was little over a yard away from her, he through a kunai, and then just a moment later a shuriken. Not bad, Kurenai thought.

The kunai and shuriken were thrown to keep her busy while he came up and hit her. But she wasn't a Jonin for nothing. She was easily fast enough to smack enough both the projectiles away and engage Naruto in a physical combat. She stopped his incoming punch by grabbing his wrist.

"Did you really think that was going to wo-" She didn't get to finish her sentence as Naruto didn't just stop with single punch, he through another one. Which Kurenai also grabbed. Then Naruto tried to kick, which she easily blocked away with her own leg. Naruto was persistent. Not to mention his Taijutsu skills were pretty great. If it weren't for the difference in weight class, and Chakra induced increased physical stats, Kurenai would have had a much harder time.

She was brought out from these thoughts a as another set of projectiles were thrown at her. Now, with Naruto in a Taijutsu combat with her, they were getting more difficult to dodge. She looked back to see who had thrown it, expecting it to be either Hinata or Ino. She most certainly didn't expect another Naruto.

She was so shocked she almost got hit with a kick by this new Naruto. She thought for a second that it could be a Genjutsu. But quickly discarded it. There is no way any of these three were able to pull off a convincing Genjutsu of that high caliber. Not to mention, she would've sensed the disturbance in her Chakra.

But the other possibility was even more ridiculous. "Shadow Clone?" She whispered. Both the Narutos grinned.

Okay, just somehow Naruto can create a Shadow Clone. She was already impressed with one of her Genin. No matter how high a Jinchuriki's Chakra reserves are, creating a Shadow Clone is nothing to scoff at. But now all she needed to do was dispel the clone and then deal with the real one.

She had yet to actually go on the offensive, she had no reason to. Naruto now gave her that reason. She quickly grabbed the Naruto on her left and threw him away from her and immediately punched the one on the right to the face. Not so hard to actually seriously hurt, but hard enough to dispel a Shadow Clone. That Naruto fell to the ground but didn't dispel. Okay, so that was the real one. She kicked the Naruto that came back… and he didn't dispel either. What?!

She was getting frustrated. She kicked the Naruto on the ground much harder than before, she was satisfied when it dispelled with a pop. Okay, so not only Naruto could make a Shadow Clone, they were also very tough. She got to the real Naruto and punched him harder, expecting to hear a shout of pain. But instead she heard a pop as that Naruto too, dispelled. Kurenai was amazed. Naruto can already create more than one Shadow Clones?

Her amazement just became complete and utter disbelief as three more Naruto came from three different directions. They engaged in Taijutsu combat with her. And then two more Naruto jumped in from the trees surprising her. She had had too many surprises for one day. So she went full offensive and started tearing through the Narutos. But five against one is still a hard fight. And Kurenai did get hit three times. She was not ashamed to admit that it hurt. Damn Naruto hit hard. And he still hadn't actually fought her! These were all clones!

By the time she had dispelled all the clones, she was breathing a little heavily. Then her eyes suddenly went wide and she quickly jumped to the left.

Ino had tried her clan's mind transfer Jutsu and she had come very close to being successful. Kurenai could've still fought it off even if she had gotten hit, but she really didn't want to test herself at that time. She quickly took out a ninja wire from her pouch and tied Ino to a tree. "Damn it!" Ino muttered. Kurenai chucked, "It was a very good attempt, Ino. Really."

Okay, one down. Two to go.

Just then, Hinata jumped on her from the above tree. The same tactic was not going to work twice. But a moment later, Naruto also came. Kurenai supposed their plan was to keep Kurenai busy as long as Hinata could get a few good hits, and Hinata's skills with Gentle Fist were nothing to scoff at. Decent enough plan, but it was not to work. Kurenai didn't let Hinata even tough her, she kicked and punched both Naruto and Hinata. Naruto she hit especially hard. Eventually, neither of them were able to continue fighting. Kurenai was glad that at least this time it was the real Naruto.

"Well…" Kurenai said drawing it out. The Genins were looking expectantly to her. "…I'm impressed." The Genins breathed a sigh of relief.

* * *

Author's Notes:

-In my fic. Clone jutsu is Genjutsu. I know it's a Ninjutsu in canon. But here, it is not.

-Transformation and Replacement Jutsu don't exist in my fic. They're too convenient. Replacement jutsu is already like a bootleg version of Hiraishin. True transformation is one of the biggest plot breaking powers in fiction.

-Boy flicker also doesn't exist. It can also make fights too convenient.

-I am severely nerfing down the number of Shadow Clones Naruto can produce. Because at some point, you should just win by numbers. And when Naruto makes literally 1000 clones and all of them end up doing barely anything. Sorry, but to me, it makes Naruto look incompetent.

-I'm also removing the "Shadow Clone memory transfer" crap. It's a really bad plot device. Either you abuse it, conveniently forget it, or just make Naruto horribly brain dead for not realizing it. I don't like any of these options. So I'm just removing it.

-Itachi will not be a good guy in my story. Also, if it weren't clear, he didn't kill the whole clan. Just the six supposed most powerful members of it. The reason is because the canon Uchiha massacre is too extreme in every way. It's too extreme a "solution". And it's too extreme of a plot point that you can't ignore it. Seeing that I don't want the Uchihas to take over the plot, I'm removing it.

-I'm bad at coming up with Japanese names, or any names for that matter. So apologies.

-At first, I wanted to have both of these chapters as one small prologue. I have no idea how they become so long.


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